1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a slide valve and more particularly to such a valve used on a thin envelope or bag that is employed as an inflatable void filling packaging bag.
A recent development in the field of packaging is the use of inflatable bags for filling voids between the packaged product and the sides of the package container. These inflatable bags take the place of styrofoam packing material and have distinct advantages over the use of such solid packing material. Foremost among the advantages is that the inflatable bags contain much less bulk than the prior material and are reusable.
The inflatable bag or envelope requires a simple, dependable and inexpensive valve to permit inflation and deflation of the packing bag. The present invention is directed to a valve meeting these requirements and in addition is of flat construction to readily fit within any package along with its associated bag.
2. Description of the Prior Art
There exists a considerable number of valve-type devices for plastic bags a representative example being U.S. Pat. No. 4,739,902. These prior valves are customarily bulky and associated with extended nozzles which serve purposes other than that of a valve for a packing bag of the type herein described. They lack the simplicity and reliability of a valve having two discreet positions, open and closed.
The present invention meets the needs of inflatable void filling packing material which the more cumbersome prior art valves lack.